Compare the2024 Subaru ForesterVS 2023 Lincoln Corsair

Safety
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Forester are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Corsair doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Forester has standard Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Corsair doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Forester. But it costs extra on the Corsair.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Forester Premium/Sport/Wilderness/Limited/Touring’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Corsair doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.

Both the Forester and the Corsair have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors, rear cross-path warning and driver alert monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Subaru Forester is safer than the Lincoln Corsair:

	Forester	Corsair
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Compression	22 lbs.	23 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	31%	36.3%
Leg Forces (l/r)	105/93 lbs.	220/169 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Subaru Forester is safer than the Lincoln Corsair:

	Forester	Corsair
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	66	197
Chest Movement	.6 inches	.9 inches
Abdominal Force	122 lbs.	191 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	670 lbs.	816 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	121	344

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Subaru Forester is safer than the Corsair:

	Forester	Corsair
Overall Evaluation	ACCEPTABLE	MARGINAL
Structure	ACCEPTABLE	ACCEPTABLE
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Head Injury Criterion	107	391
Head Peak Forces	no contact	93 G’s
Neck Tension	223 lbs.	379 lbs.
Torso	ACCEPTABLE	MARGINAL
Shoulder Deflection	.91 in	1.1 in
Shoulder Force	201 lbs.	223 lbs.
Torso Max Deflection	1.5 in	1.77 in
Torso Deflection Rate	8 MPH	8 MPH
Pelvis	ACCEPTABLE	MARGINAL
Pelvis Force	1071 lbs.	1160 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	MARGINAL
	Passenger Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Neck Tension	45 lbs.	201 lbs.
Torso	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Torso Max Deflection	1.26 in	1.5 in
Pelvis	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Pelvis Force	625 lbs.	1093 lbs.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Forester the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 54 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Corsair last would have qualified as a “Top Safety Pick” in 2022.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Forester third among compact suvs in their 2023 Initial Quality Study. The Corsair isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are better in initial quality than Lincoln vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru above average in initial quality. With 23 more problems per 100 vehicles, Lincoln is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Lincoln vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 3 places higher in reliability than Lincoln.

Engine

The flat cylinder configuration of the boxer engine in the Forester lowers its center of gravity, enhancing handling stability without compromising ground clearance. The Corsair doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Forester gets better mileage than the Corsair running its gasoline engine:

			MPG
Forester
	AWD	2.5 DOHC flat-4	26 city/33 hwy
		Wilderness 2.5 DOHC flat-4	25 city/28 hwy
Corsair
	FWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/29 hwy
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	21 city/29 hwy

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Subaru Forester uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Corsair with the 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder engine requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The Forester has 5.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the Corsair Grand Touring’s standard fuel tank (16.6 vs. 11.1 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The Forester has a standard locking fuel door which locks and unlocks with the power locks. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Corsair. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Subaru Forester higher (7 out of 10) than the Lincoln Corsair (5 to 7). This means the Forester produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Corsair every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Forester’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the Corsair:

	Forester	Corsair
Front Rotors	12.4 inches	12.1 inches

The Forester stops much shorter than the Corsair:

	Forester	Corsair
70 to 0 MPH	167 feet	179 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	117 feet	126 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	138 feet	139 feet	Consumer Reports

Tires and Wheels

The Forester Wilderness has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Corsair; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

Suspension and Handling

The Forester Limited handles at .82 G’s, while the Corsair Standard AWD pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Forester Limited executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Corsair Standard AWD (27.3 seconds @ .63 average G’s vs. 27.7 seconds @ .67 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Forester’s turning circle is 1.7 feet tighter than the Corsair’s (35.4 feet vs. 37.1 feet).

Chassis

The Subaru Forester may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 250 to 800 pounds less than the Lincoln Corsair.

Passenger Space

The Forester has 9.1 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Corsair (111.6 vs. 102.5).

The Forester has 1.7 inches more front headroom, .1 inches more front legroom, 1 inch more front shoulder room, .9 inches more rear headroom, .8 inches more rear legroom, 2.8 inches more rear hip room and .9 inches more rear shoulder room than the Corsair.

Cargo Capacity

The Forester has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Corsair with its rear seat up (28.9 vs. 27.6 cubic feet). The Forester has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Corsair with its rear seat folded (74.2 vs. 57.6 cubic feet).

Servicing Ease

The engine in the Forester is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Corsair. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

Ergonomics

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Forester’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Corsair’s headlights are rated “Acceptable” to “Poor.”

When the Forester Touring is put in reverse, the passenger rearview mirror tilts from its original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirror into its original position. The Corsair’s mirror doesn’t automatically adjust for backing.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Forester owner. The Car Book by Jack Gillis rates the Forester with a number “1” insurance rate while the Corsair is rated higher at a number “8” rate.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Forester is less expensive to operate than the Corsair because it costs $218 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the Forester than the Corsair, including $50 less for a water pump, $320 less for a muffler, $87 less for front brake pads, $134 less for a fuel pump, $347 less for a timing belt/chain and $888 less for a power steering pump.

Recommendations

Both are recommended, but Consumer Reports® chose the Subaru Forester as its “Top Pick,” the highest scoring vehicle in its category, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Subaru Forester outsold the Lincoln Corsair by over four to one during 2022.